godan verb (-ru), transitive verb
shave off; scrape off; whittle away
Used for physically removing material from a surface by cutting, scraping, or planing. Also used figuratively for gradually reducing something, such as costs or time.
鉛筆をナイフで削り取る。
I shave off the pencil with a knife.
予算を少しずつ削
The budget was whittled away little by little.